What About Me (song)
Encyclopedia
"What About Me" is a song written by Garry Frost and Frances Swan, first recorded by Australia
n rock
band Moving Pictures
from their album Days of Innocence
. It was the band's first number-one single in Australia spending six consecutive weeks on the top; there, it was the second-highest selling single of 1982. The success of the song led them to America where it became a hit, reaching #29 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
chart. The song stayed in the U.S. charts for such a long time that it managed to make Billboards top 100 Pop Singles of 1983, at #88, a rare feat for a single with such a low peak position. The song made an unusual comeback in 1989, peaking at #46.
in his day job. He had gone out to get lunch at his local shop in the Sydney
suburb of Annandale
and saw a small boy not being noticed waiting at the counter. He was sufficiently moved by the vision to write the song. The song was rarely played live by the band; when it was, it was played in a modern country style. It would never have been recorded but their debut album's producer Charles Fisher
heard Frost and Smith tinkling with the tune on the studio piano during a break in recording. Fisher suggested that Moving Pictures record the song.
It was initially released as a single in January 1982. It debuted on the charts during February and five weeks later reached #1, where it remained for six weeks, going on to become the second biggest selling single in Australia for 1982 (behind Survivor
’s "Eye of the Tiger
") and went on to win the "Best Single" award at the 1982 Countdown Music Awards. "What About Me?" was released in the United States later in September 1982, reaching #29 and spending 26 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. Because of its longevity on the Hot 100, the song was able to end up on the year-end chart at #88 in the U.S. It was re-released in the U.S. market in 1989 by Geffen Records
, climbing to #46 at its second attempt.
series one runner-up Shannon Noll
covered
the song for his the debut album That's What I'm Talking About
. He first performed the song on Australian Idol with the genre of #1 hits, where he received positive comments by the judges and was also seen as one of the highlights of the debut season of Idol. The song was released as a CD single
on 29 January 2004 where it debuted at number-one and stayed there for four weeks. It eventually sold over 280,000 copies (certified 4x platinum) in Australia alone and became the highest selling single in Australia for 2004 — two decades after the original version was the second-highest seller of its year.
When released in Australia, demand for Noll's single was unprecedented. The single debuted at the peak position on the ARIA charts
the week of 2 February 2004, achieving 2x platinum accreditation (140,000 copies shipped) in its debut week, and knocking long term number-one hit "Hey Ya!
" by Outkast
from the top position on the singles chart.
Following several plays on Irish radio by a former Australian DJ, requests for "What About Me" in Ireland
skyrocketed, and due to public demand, the Australian pressing of the single was shipped to Ireland. The initial shipment sold out within the first week of sale, prompting a further larger shipment to be made soon after. "What About Me" spent almost six months on the Ireland Top 50 singles chart and peaked at number-two for two weeks.
, was the second music video from Shannon Noll. Set and filmed over two 38+ degree days in Shannon's home town of Condobolin, NSW, the video is essentially a snapshot of outback Australia and depicts Shannon's life in the small country town. The extras in the video for "What About Me" are all local Condobolin residents, including Shannon's two brothers. The music video was later popularly parodied by comedian Rove McManus on his television show "Rove Live
".
There has also been a parody music video produced for the AAMI
insurance company.
recorded a cover version for his debut album, Shayne Ward
. In 1983, Italian singer Anna Oxa
recorded a version of this song in Italian with the title "Senza di Me".
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band Moving Pictures
Moving Pictures (band)
Moving Pictures was a rock music band formed in Sydney, Australia in 1980. They are best known for their hit single, "What About Me" and multi-platinum album Days of Innocence, both of which topped the charts in Australia.-Biography:...
from their album Days of Innocence
Days of Innocence
Days of Innocence is the debut album released by Australian band Moving Pictures in 1981. It spent 7 weeks at the top of the Australian Album charts in 1982...
. It was the band's first number-one single in Australia spending six consecutive weeks on the top; there, it was the second-highest selling single of 1982. The success of the song led them to America where it became a hit, reaching #29 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart. The song stayed in the U.S. charts for such a long time that it managed to make Billboards top 100 Pop Singles of 1983, at #88, a rare feat for a single with such a low peak position. The song made an unusual comeback in 1989, peaking at #46.
Moving Pictures
Frost wrote the song when he was working with autistic childrenAutism
Autism is a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior. These signs all begin before a child is three years old. Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how nerve cells and their...
in his day job. He had gone out to get lunch at his local shop in the Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
suburb of Annandale
Annandale, New South Wales
Annandale is a suburb of Inner West Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Annandale is located within 3-5 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of the Municipality of Leichhardt. Annandale's northern end lies on Rozelle Bay,...
and saw a small boy not being noticed waiting at the counter. He was sufficiently moved by the vision to write the song. The song was rarely played live by the band; when it was, it was played in a modern country style. It would never have been recorded but their debut album's producer Charles Fisher
Charles Fisher (producer)
Charles Fisher is an Australian record producer. Often referred to as the song doctor. He is widely known as the producer of Savage Garden's eponymous album which yielded 10 ARIAs in 1997. "I Want You", a single from the aforementioned album also won a Channel V award in India...
heard Frost and Smith tinkling with the tune on the studio piano during a break in recording. Fisher suggested that Moving Pictures record the song.
It was initially released as a single in January 1982. It debuted on the charts during February and five weeks later reached #1, where it remained for six weeks, going on to become the second biggest selling single in Australia for 1982 (behind Survivor
Survivor (band)
Survivor is an American rock band formed in Chicago in 1978. The band achieved its greatest success in the 1980s with its AOR sound, which garnered many charting singles, especially in the United States. The band is best known for its double platinum-certified 1982 hit "Eye of the Tiger", the theme...
’s "Eye of the Tiger
Eye of the Tiger
"Eye of the Tiger" is a single by American rock band Survivor, from their third album Eye of the Tiger. It was released as a single on May 29, 1982, the same year as the album. It was written at the request of actor Sylvester Stallone, who was unable to get permission for Queen's "Another One Bites...
") and went on to win the "Best Single" award at the 1982 Countdown Music Awards. "What About Me?" was released in the United States later in September 1982, reaching #29 and spending 26 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. Because of its longevity on the Hot 100, the song was able to end up on the year-end chart at #88 in the U.S. It was re-released in the U.S. market in 1989 by Geffen Records
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
, climbing to #46 at its second attempt.
Shannon Noll version
Australian IdolAustralian Idol
Australian Idol is a Logie Award-winning Australian singing competition, which began its first season on July 2003 and ended its run in November 2009. As part of the Idol franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program Pop Idol, which was created by British entertainment executive...
series one runner-up Shannon Noll
Shannon Noll
Shannon Noll first came to prominence as runner-up of the first series of Australian Idol which led to him being signed to Sony BMG. Since then he has released five Top 10 albums and ten Top 10 singles. His first two albums That's What I'm Talking About in 2004 and Lift in 2005 debuted at No...
covered
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
the song for his the debut album That's What I'm Talking About
That's What I'm Talking About
That's What I'm Talking About is the debut album by Australian singer Shannon Noll, released on 8 February 2004 . The album includes a longer version of his number one smash-hit, 5x Platinum debut single, "What About Me", the Bryan Adams penned Top 5 single, "Drive", as well as the number one...
. He first performed the song on Australian Idol with the genre of #1 hits, where he received positive comments by the judges and was also seen as one of the highlights of the debut season of Idol. The song was released as a CD single
CD single
A CD single is a music single in the form of a standard size Compact Disc, not to be confused with the 3-inch CD single, which uses a smaller form factor. The format was introduced in the mid-1980s, but did not gain its place in the market until the early 1990s...
on 29 January 2004 where it debuted at number-one and stayed there for four weeks. It eventually sold over 280,000 copies (certified 4x platinum) in Australia alone and became the highest selling single in Australia for 2004 — two decades after the original version was the second-highest seller of its year.
When released in Australia, demand for Noll's single was unprecedented. The single debuted at the peak position on the ARIA charts
ARIA Charts
The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...
the week of 2 February 2004, achieving 2x platinum accreditation (140,000 copies shipped) in its debut week, and knocking long term number-one hit "Hey Ya!
Hey Ya!
"Hey Ya!" is a song written and produced by André 3000 for his 2003 album The Love Below, part of the hip hop duo OutKast's double album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. The song takes influence from funk and rock music...
" by Outkast
OutKast
Outkast is an American hip hop duo based in East Point, Georgia, consisting of Atlanta native André "André 3000" Benjamin and Savannah, Georgia-born Antwan "Big Boi" Patton. They were originally known as Two Shades Deep but later changed the group's name to OutKast...
from the top position on the singles chart.
Following several plays on Irish radio by a former Australian DJ, requests for "What About Me" in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
skyrocketed, and due to public demand, the Australian pressing of the single was shipped to Ireland. The initial shipment sold out within the first week of sale, prompting a further larger shipment to be made soon after. "What About Me" spent almost six months on the Ireland Top 50 singles chart and peaked at number-two for two weeks.
Music video
The video, directed by Australian director Anthony RoseAnthony Rose
Anthony Rose is a British wine journalist known for his column in The Independent. He also contributes to publications such as Wine & Spirit, Decanter and The World of Fine Wine...
, was the second music video from Shannon Noll. Set and filmed over two 38+ degree days in Shannon's home town of Condobolin, NSW, the video is essentially a snapshot of outback Australia and depicts Shannon's life in the small country town. The extras in the video for "What About Me" are all local Condobolin residents, including Shannon's two brothers. The music video was later popularly parodied by comedian Rove McManus on his television show "Rove Live
Rove Live
Rove, formerly Rove Live, was an Australian television talk show which premiered on the Nine Network on 22 September 1999, before moving to Network Ten which aired the program from 2000 until November, 2009. The show was hosted by comedian Rove McManus, and featured an ensemble cast, who presented...
".
There has also been a parody music video produced for the AAMI
AAMI
AAMI may refer to:* Age-associated memory impairment* Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation* Australian Associated Motor Insurers Limited , an Australian insurance company brand of Suncorp-Metway Limited...
insurance company.
Other versions recorded
X-Factor contestant Shayne WardShayne Ward
Shayne Thomas Ward is an English pop singer who rose to fame as the winner of second series of The X Factor. He has sold over 3 million records worldwide and has had number one albums and singles in 9 countries.During The X Factor competition, Ward was mentored by manager Louis Walsh...
recorded a cover version for his debut album, Shayne Ward
Shayne Ward (album)
Shayne Ward is the self-titled debut album by English pop singer and the second X Factor winner Shayne Ward. It was released on 17 April 2006 and debuted at the top position in both Ireland and the United Kingdom. Since its release, it has been certified platinum in the UK, selling 531,659 copies...
. In 1983, Italian singer Anna Oxa
Anna Oxa
Anna Oxa is an Italian singer of Albanian descent, well-known through her numerous appearances in the televised Italian song contest, the Sanremo Music Festival. In 1978, at the age of sixteen, she took second place with the song "Un'emozione da poco" at the Sanremo Festival...
recorded a version of this song in Italian with the title "Senza di Me".
Moving Pictures Australian release
- "What About Me?" (Garry Frost, Frances Swan) - 3:38
- "Round Again" - 4:03
Moving Pictures U.S. release
- "What About Me?" (Garry Frost, Frances Swan) - 3:37
- "Joni and the Romeo" (Alex Smith) - 3:28
Shannon Noll release
- "What About Me" (Garry Frost, Frances Swan) - 3:21
- "What About Me" (Sterling remix)
- "The Way That I Feel"
Moving Pictures version
| Chart (1982) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop Singles | 29 |
| Chart (1989) | Peak Position |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 46 |
Shannon Noll version
| Chart (2004) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart | 1 |
| Ireland Singles Chart | 2 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 10 |